Tag Archives: Handwriting

Raised Line Paper… What Is It?

Accessibility, Education, Fine Motor, , ,

Sarah Glovasky M.S. OTR/L

Sometimes called tactile paper, Raised Line Paper is used to help individuals stay between the lines when writing. The raised line paper has raised top and bottom lines to provide tactile, proprioceptive and visual feedback to the writer. There are a variety of types of paper to choose from!

Raised Line Learning Sheets

Do you have a beginner writer? The raised line learning sheets are a good place to start from! There are letters, numbers, alphabet coloring sheets and mazes! The tactile input helps the new learners understand where to keep their pencil and crayon marks! 

Raised Line Writing Paper

There are so many options to help more advanced writers be as successful as they can. There are different sized lines (narrow and wide) depending on the level of the writer. If you need more of a visual cue there is the option to have red and blue lines on your paper. Double the input for a higher accuracy when writing. If spacing or sizing is a problem there is boxed raised line paper to provide a space for every letter to fit in. Pro tip: If all this sounds great but you are not sure what will work best the assortment pack is very helpful!

Staged Raised Line Paper

There is a product line that is able to take a writer from beginning stages right through advanced writing. This is a six stage series of handwriting papers that begins with clearly defined writing spaces and perceptual cues that fade in successive stages as the student gains mastery. The thick, colorful dark blue baselines are raised, providing not only visual cues, but also tactile cues.  Pro Tip: Students advance at their own pace so having all the stages on hand is very helpful!

Stage One: For beginning writers. Clearly defined writing spaces.

Stage Two: Writing spaces are less defined as shading is partially removed.

Stage Three: Shading has been completely removed and replaced with a borderline.

Stage Four: Writing spaces are less structured; fewer distractions than typical notebook paper.

Stage Five: The most popular Stage Write paper! Spacing between blue baseline and gray guideline reduced to 1/4″.

Stage Six: Comparable to standard notebook paper. Still incorporates raised dark blue baseline and clearly defined margins.

Another great aspect of all this paper is it can be used with a variety of reading/writing/handwriting programs! Give your writers the tools they need to be successful independent writers.

Saturday Seminar: OT Rubrics for Fine Motor, Visual Motor and Handwriting Skills

Events, Filomena's Corner, Fine Motor, Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, Visual, , , ,

Valorie_ToddWhen a group of OTs get together to brainstorm, there’s bound to be some exciting “stuff” that is the outcome. Valorie Todd, MA, OTR/L and her school-based practice colleagues in the New York and New Jersey vicinity had a goal in mind. They wanted to devise a way to monitor quarterly progress in performance skills they identified as “OT goals” or “Areas of Need” on the IEP that was based on normative data. Valorie discussed the rubrics her group developed during her Therapro Saturday Seminar Series workshop on August 22, 2015 entitled:  OT Rubrics for Fine Motor, Visual Motor and Handwriting Skills.

This seminar was the kick-off for the Fall Saturday Seminar Series and attracted about 60 attendees who listened closely, commented freely, and shared thoughts. Valorie and her colleagues were determined to conceive a way to assess a student’s performance against predetermined criteria, in which a student is measured against his own performance.

Valorie’s group identified 7 areas for assessment including:

  • Postural Control
  • Sensory Modulation
  • Ocular Motor Skills
  • Object Manipulation: Fine Motor/Hand Skills
  • Controlled Tool Use: Color, Trace, Cut
  • Design Copy: Graphics/Objects, and
  • Handwriting.

In her seminar, Valorie discussed Object Manipulation, Controlled Tool Use, Design Copy, and Handwriting. Rubrics for Kindergarten and Grade 1 were identified.

Valorie offered a thoroughly researched plan on how to assess function and address the skill through worksheets that acknowledged how a student was expected to progress sequentially in each area.  She made clear distinctions in skills expected of a kindergartner versus a first grader.  For example, when assessing “Tracing,” specifically Pencil Control:

A kindergartner would receive a score of 4 if he:

  • “Controls lines with min. errors 90-100%”
  • “Stops/turns at corners (angles/arcs)”

A first grader would receive a score of 4 if he

  • “Has good control within/on lines in all directions (90-100%)”
  • “Starts/stops on dots with 1-2 errors”

Valorie’s rubrics were well-defined and can be easily replicated. She was very enthused about sharing her work, including worksheets, and encouraged therapists to use her rubrics and provide her with feedback so that the rubrics can further be developed with input and use over time. As a result, a meaningful assessment of quarterly progress can be obtained and insufficient areas can be addressed systematically and meaningfully before the student is due for the next standardized evaluation.

Attendees comments were very positive and encouraging:

“It was excellent! So much info, well related to school based OTs. This will be helpful in writing goals, tracking progress, presenting at meetings, and for my Teachpoint eval.”  Amanda B., Occupational Therapist

“It helps so much to have these rubrics to support our clinical observations when IEPs are moving toward data driven/measurable goals and objectives. It will help with tracking and also guide thinking when working on skills.”  Anonymous, Occupational Therapist

“Love the practicality of the Rubrics.  Anything we can take away & use is terrific!”  Amanda H., Occupational Therapist

“Looks at detail of task performance and observation of foundational skills which students have or need to build on.”  Anonymous,  Occupational Therapist

“I would recommend this seminar to a colleague because it was well researched and the information was very comprehensive.  The material is very current and I can readily apply this information.”  Anonymous, Occupational Therapist

Thank you, Val!

Filomena Connor, MS, OTR/L

Getting it Write: Wrist Extension in Handwriting

Fine Motor, Handwriting, ,

gettingitwriteHere at Therapro we have a BIG focus on handwriting – from Programs, to Practice Worksheets, to Grips and Tools for maintaining proper positioning. Since positioning is the foundation for good handwriting, we recommend emphasizing these skills right from the beginning.

The best position for handwriting is with the wrist in extension. This extension provides the support necessary to get the hand into a tripod position to hold the pencil.

We’ve noticed two trends recently that can hinder proper handwriting development:

  • Children have been learning to write, and using pencils much earlier
  • Children have a tendency to “hunch” their shoulders due to poor muscle tone
  • People don’t put babies on their stomachs anymore, meaning they don’t learn to push up – leading to weaker arm and shoulder muscles

The reason these can be an issue is because they’re using the wrong muscles of the hand – what happens is they get a “death grip” on the pencil from holding it wrong, and keeping the wrist in the wrong position.

If babies don’t gain arm and shoulder strength, this can manifest itself when first grade teachers introduce handwriting. Low muscle tone leads to poor posture and grip, which become evident when the child first learns writing skills.

The way to get out of these bad habits is to put the wrist into extension. Since you don’t want them writing all over your walls (we don’t, at least!), the solution is a slanted surface. Having an incline of at least 20 degrees is the ideal angle for wrist extension and proper handwriting technique. Getting the writing surface more toward vertical will straighten the wrist and provide the support needed to hold a pencil correctly.

Our Write Slant Boards were first developed for the adult market, but are great to use with kids, and in the classroom. The slant board not only puts the wrist in extension, but it is also good for vision, visual tracking, and strengthening posture.

In the same vein as our Write Slant Boards is the Preschool Board, which not only is excellent for learning handwriting, but is also a versatile desktop tool. The idea was developed by an Occupational Therapist. It can be converted from a 30 degree angle for handwriting, to a 60 degree angle to be used as an art easel. The Preschool Board also comes with built-in storage for all of your writing and art supplies!